l80 Proceedings of Societies. 



On the recommendation of the Council, the Society also unanimously 

 elected the following gentleman Associate Members, viz. :— 



Mr Forest, gunsmith, Jedburgh ; Mr Williamson, Melrose ; Mr Dun- 

 lop, Makerston, Kelso. 



3. Proceedings of the Cambridge Philosophical Society. 



November 20, 1829 — The Rev. Dr Turton, the President, in the Chair. 



A paper was read by Professor Airy, containing the calculation of a cor- 

 rection which it is proper to apply to the length of a pendulum consisting 

 of a sphere suspended by a fine wire. The motion of such a pendulum 

 will be somewhat different from that of a sphere fixed to a stiff wire, and 

 the correction would affect the last decimal places in Biot's estimation of 

 the length. 



Professor Whewell also read a paper on the causes and characters of the 

 early styles of church architecture ; and after the meeting gave an account, 

 illustrated by a number of models, of the different modes of vaulting which 

 succeeded each other in the early churches of Germany. The effect was 

 pointed out which results in the construction of churches from this succes- 

 sion of contrivances, combined with other circumstances which arise from 

 the division of the building into three aisles ; and it was shown that the 

 adoption of the pointed arch was one of the consequences which followed 

 from the necessary progress of the art of vaulting. 



A new Part of the Society's Transactions is just published, containing 

 353 pages and 6 plates. It is intended for the future to publish a Part at 

 the end of each term, in order that communications laid before the Socie- 

 ty may be given to the world as soon as possible. 



November 30. — The Rev. Dr Turton, the President, in the chair. 



Mr Rothman, of Trinity College, read a notice of an observation of the 

 winter solstice at Alexandria, which is recorded in Strabo, and which has 

 hitherto not been understood, from its being spoken of by the author as 

 an observation of an equinox. 



. Professor Whewell continued the reading of his paper " on the causes 

 and characters of pointed architecture;" and explained the influence of the 

 pointed arch upon the other members of buildings, through which influ- 

 ence the Romanesque style was at last superseded by the very opposite 

 forms of the Gothic. It was stated also that the transition from one of 

 these styles to the other, which took place in England by means of the 

 Early English style, was made in Germany by means of a very different 

 one, which may be termed Early German. Of this style the characters 

 were given in some detail, and it was remarked that, among these, the in- 

 vention of the flying buttress was of as much importance to the complete 

 developement of the Gothic style, as that of the pointed arch. 



Observations were also communicated by Mr Millar, of St John's College, 

 on the forms and angles of the crystals of boracic-acid, indigo, and borate 

 and bicarbonate of ammonia. 



After the meeting. Professor Sedgwick gave an account of the geological 

 structure of the Austrian Alps, illustrated by the representation of a sec- 

 tion traversing their chain,, and passing from the plains of Bavaria to the 

 Gulf of Venice. 



